Political violence and human rights violations accountability: circumstances, uses and effects of forced disappearance registration

During civil conflict and at times of state terrorism, people around the world are executed, tortured or imprisoned for political reasons. Registration of human rights violations is essential to face such atrocities and seek justice, truth, reparation, memory, and non-repetition measures that strengthen the rule of law and democracy. Despite the social, political, legal, and cultural relevance of violence registration, there is limited research on this matter. This Newton-Conicyt funded project has contributed to fill this gap by opening the field of study of the registry of political violence. The interdisciplinary team—in close relation with human rights advocacy organizations—has analysed the paradigmatic case of the documentation of human rights violations perpetrated by Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile. In the project’s first phase the team designed and employed an innovative framework to examine how these atrocities were recorded during the dictatorship and its implications for the transitional process. This phase involved extensive research on archives, truth commissions, and memory sites, creating a pioneering initiative of archive disclosure for all generations to become aware of the importance of recording violence, including an artwork exhibition. In partnership with experts from Colombia and Mexico, the second phase will expand the framework of the role of registry following the case of forced disappearance in societies that have suffered armed conflicts and drug wars. The goals are to boost the availability of these registries and associated public policies, to strengthen social justice, peace and democracy, and to develop robust comparative studies and policy recommendations.